On Friday, I watched a portion of the live coverage from the Senate floor that included speeches and the vote that could reopen the government. The weather wasn’t great here in southern Indiana (raining and chilly), so why not?
Regarding the Senate vote, I saw:
- Republicans rejecting the Schumer option — Schumer’s plan offered a “clean” continuing resolution to fund government operations in exchange for extending ACA tax credits.
- Democrats rejecting the Johnson option — Johnson’s plan offered a House-passed continuing resolution to fund the government that fails to address the expiring Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies.
I put brownies in the oven and set a timer via my Alexa device. It then popped up a news headline with the title: “Senate Republicans Block Reasonable Democratic Offer to End Shutdown.” ~NBC News
Journalists should not be determining what’s reasonable.
STOP IT already!
Many major news agencies — talking about TV and publications because it’s all on the Internet — manipulate reporting to align with specific ideological goals by using selective framing and loaded language in coverage. Both sides of the political spectrum do it. When headlines subtly shape public perception through word choice or omission, it’s for sure those news organizations prioritize persuasion over objectivity. It pisses me off! In addition, it makes me question the authenticity of EVERY little bit of news they report on.
The government remaining closed — and the persuasive massaging of content being offered via news outlets (rather than unbiased news reporting) — is widening the gap between Americans with different viewpoints.
It’s like back in the day when my buddy, Alisa, and I would watch a trial on Court TV, and then tune in to Nancy Grace at the end of the day. Good ole’ Nancy would make shit up as she went along! We’d text one another and say, “That’s not what happened!” Or… “They didn’t say that!”
The wrap up…
I asked Grok, Genesis, and ChatGPT to deep dive into reporting on the government shutdown by CNN, Fox News, AP, and Reuters. The result — across the board — is as follows:
“Reuters is the most balanced, giving equal weight to both sides. AP leans slightly Democratic but includes GOP efforts. CNN attributes blame to Republicans in 80-90% of its coverage. Fox News, conversely, attributes blame to Democrats in 80-90% of its coverage.”
It’s no wonder trust in authentic news reporting is eroding. To quote my friend, David Horsager, “TRUST, NOT MONEY, IS THE CURRENCY OF BUSINESS AND LIFE.” (His past client list includes the US Congress… go figure.)
Now you know: Moon dust is toxic. Astronauts have reported watery eyes, throat irritation, and coughing after accumulating dust on suits. Moon dust particles are not weathered and are ultrafine, sharp, and reactive.